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The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) energy council has extended the deadline for feedback on a proposal to make air conditioners 'smart demand-response capable.'

The closing date for written submissions has been extended by one week to Monday, September 23, 2019.

Demand response technology refers to ‘the rapid modification of appliance operation in response to changes in the condition of the grid’ which can assist with management of peak energy demand events.

Peak demand events, often prompted by extreme weather, result in major spikes in electricity usage.

These events have a disproportionate impact on network costs as they often require expensive investment to increase network capacity and to maintain the reliability of electricity supply.

The South Australian Government is leading this consultation under the Energy Equipment Efficiency (E3) Program and will look at a number of appliances including air conditioners, as well as electric boosted hot water heaters and swimming pool pumps.

The proposed changes would require appliances that are supplied, or offered for supply, to comply with the full range of demand response modes (DRMs) in either the relevant part of AS/NZS 4755 Part 3 or AS 4755.2.